Ramen fans get slurping at Kyu Bistro

Calvin and Melody Truong may not be Japanese, but that does
not mean they can't make a mean bowl of ramen.

"We've had a lot of Japanese customers and they've
loved it here... they've said that they definitely see the love and attention
that we put into our broths." says Calvin Truong.

"And now they've come back several times," Melody
Truong interjects. "So that must be a good sign."

Melody and Calvin Truong (Mike Green)

The young couple, both just in their mid-20s, opened up Kyu Bistro just a couple weeks ago in a strip mall at 185
Isabel St., and has been pumping out bowls of pungent, delicious soup -- and
some tasty izakaya and robata dishes -- non-stop since.

The idea to open Kyu came to Calvin Truong after making a
soup-centric trip to the ramen capital of Canada -- that being Vancouver's West
End -- where lines form at various shops for the sweat-inducing, rich pork-based
soup that is made to slurp.

"There is nothing like it out here," he says.
"We had a friend out there [in Vancouver] whose dad used to own a ramen
shop in Japan. So we learned some things from him and kind of made some styles
of our own, and we brought it over here."

Being a former Vancouverite, and a devout ramen enthusiast
myself, I'm glad he did, as the spicy miso ramen at Kyu has been the most
authentic bowl of the stuff I've found so far in this city.

Calvin Truong at work in the kitchen. (Mike Green)

The broth is reduced for at least 12 hours, creating a
rich pork stock which he mixes with a dashi broth (a fish stock made from
bonito flakes) and chicken stock, to create a more pungent take on a
traditional ramen broth. The results are a complex soup base that he builds
upon for their four different kinds of ramen.

And how has the Winnipeg audience reacted to such an
acquired-taste-sounding soup? Well just take one look at their lunch rush and
you'll see why the Truongs have had to increase stock production three-fold in the
past couple weeks.

"It's a little bit more robust and has some more interesting
flavours to it, and so people were kind of uneasy about it at first," Calvin Truong explains. "But
people are really starting to catch on, and really starting to like it."

Kyu also does some pretty good takes on izakaya staples
(think Japanese small plates meant to be washed down with cold beer and hot
sake), like their chicken karaage (pieces of fried chicken thighs served with
wasabi mayo) and agedashi tofu (crispy tofu in a sweet dashi sauce).

The couple hopes to get a liquor license soon, to make the
izakaya dishes that much more authentic. But until then, patrons will have to
be satisfied in washing it all down with tea or water.